Campus Arrival Dates & Opening Weekend
Below is information regarding your arrival on campus, including International and Early Arrival days, Opening Day, and Orientation Day. For students traveling alone, please consult the Early Arrival day (Friday, June 20, 2025).
International (Thursday, June 19, 2025) and Early Arrivals (Friday, June 20, 2025)
All requests for early arrival must be submitted through the Student Portal by May 5 and must include flight information. If you are submitting an Early Arrival request, the permitted dates of arrival are below:
- International Students: Thursday, June 19, 2025
- Early Arrival Domestic Students: Friday, June 20, 2025
Please use the form titled Travel Plans in your Student Portal to request an early arrival. Detailed instructions are available on the form.
Please note: It is highly recommended that students choose an early arrival if they will be traveling alone.
If you and your parent/guardian are in need of lodging accommodations for arrival prior to these dates, please see Carnegie Mellon's recommended accommodations. Please be aware that most hotels in the United States will not permit an individual under the age of 18 to stay in a hotel without a parent/guardian.
Opening Day (Saturday, June 21, 2025)
Opening Day is the preferred arrival day for all students when possible. Check-in begins at 9:00 am and goes until 1:00 pm. If you will be arriving before or after that time frame, please reach out to the Office of Pre-College Programs for assistance.
Parents/guardians are encouraged, but not required, to attend Opening Day. Students and parents/guardians will have the opportunity to hear from academic program directors and the Director of Pre-College Programs, meet with program instructors, and discuss student schedules. Lunch and dinner are provided for both students and parents/guardians on Opening Day. Parents/guardians may stay through dinner; however, all programming after dinner is for students only.
Orientation Day (Sunday, June 22, 2025)
Students who are unable to arrive on Opening Day or as an early arrival should reach out to precollege@andrew.cmu.edu for permission to arrive on Orientation Day. Please note that students will miss important meetings hosted on Opening Day, such as the first academic program meeting, an all-student meeting (including a mandatory Title IX Training), their first residential floor meeting, etc.
On Orientation Day, students will have the opportunity to learn more about Carnegie Mellon University, navigate campus, and get to know other Pre-College students. Some academic programs will have orientation meetings and/or auditions on this day as well. We highly encourage all students to take full advantage of this day.
Transportation to Campus
You will receive an email prior to Opening Day with detailed instructions for arriving on campus. You may also download the Campus Map for your reference. General options for traveling to campus are:
Driving
Driving directions will be provided in a communication sent prior to Opening Day. It will also include information on the location of residence halls and traffic flows.
28X Bus (from PIT airport)
The 28X Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus is an easy way to travel to campus. The bus can be found at the PIT airport Door #2 on the lower (baggage claim) level. Please be aware that the 28X bus runs between the hours of 4:30 am – 12:15 am. If students are arriving outside of these hours, they must arrange alternative transportation. Please see the above link for current bus fare cost, and please be prepared to have exact change as the bus drivers do not give change. The inbound Morewood Av. - past Forbes Av. stop will stop directly in front of some of our residential buildings, Morewood Gardens & E-Tower.
Rideshare
Uber and Lyft operate in Pittsburgh and provide a simple way to find transportation in our city. Please download and set up an account via the apps for these services prior to arrival. Students should plan to arrive at 1060 Morewood Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 (outside of Stever House).
Amtrak/Greyhound
Students arriving by train or bus into downtown Pittsburgh must arrange their own transportation to campus via one of the other methods listed above.
Please note: If electing to use the Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT) bus system, the 28X bus will not be a valid route from these stations. Use the PRT Trip Planner Tool to assist with finding the best route. Use the University's address (5000 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15213) as the destination address.